AIBU to think weight loss conversations in the office are unprofessional

[Officechat]

I’m really struggling with something at work and I’m not sure if I’m being overly sensitive or if this genuinely crosses a line.

My office has become completely dominated by weight‑loss chat — not just casual comments, but detailed discussions about procedures they’ve had or are planning, extreme dieting, and very negative body talk. It’s constant. I’m sat there trying to work while listening to women openly hating their bodies, comparing what they’re doing to shrink themselves, and talking about medication requests like Mounjaro as if it’s just another office topic.

I find it genuinely distressing. It’s not the same as reading about weight‑loss trends online — hearing real people around me talk about themselves this way feels heavy and bleak. It’s hard to stay neutral when the atmosphere is so focused on self‑criticism and appearance.

This morning I’d been up since 6:30 cooking lunch for myself, and by the time I got into the office and the conversation started again, I felt physically tense and mentally drained. I even had to force myself to eat because the environment made me feel awful.

Comtext : i have previously had treatment for anorexia which later developed to B + P disorder. I am now considered "recovered" but im finding it really tough. Please note i have used Ai to clarify my thoughts as it was a jumbled mess for my therapy notes.

Sorry you are finding this tough OP.
Are the convos actually that negative though?
I had a severe eating disorder in my youth, now on wegovy as my body is insulin resistant and my hormones are wreaking havoc despite exercise and healthy eating.
Obesity can possibly be an eating disorder too. Can you frame it as others getting help rather than wanting to shrink themselves.

Yes, otherwise the only person allowed to complain about something is the oldest/fattest etc. when the rest of US also have these issues. But I still can't divorce thus stuff from the expectations that society (and ourselves) put on us. But then you are getting quite political. But for that reason I can't 100% agree with 'It's my stomach, I'm allowed to hate it.'

Sorry but this is clearly a subject you are over sensitive about. It’s unreasonable to censure your colleagues because of your personal issues.

Do you feel able to tell your colleagues you find these sorts of conversations difficult or triggering?

I work in an office and there are similar conversations (though probably less extreme). Recently a colleague was brave enough to say to us all that they make her feel 'rubbish' because she is overweight. That is the first time we thought they may be making someone uncomfortable and now know not to discuss such things in her presence. We were of course never purposefully wanting to make her / anyone feel bad, but will now 100% be more considerate.

I do think it’s inappropriate to have these sort of discussions in the actual office. I’m shocked that it seems normalised. I’ve got lots of female friends, relatives and work colleagues and nobody would talk about weight as a topic of discussion, in or out of the office. People would stare at you as if you had two heads.

Once these conversations are normalised they just go on and on and on and on, day after day after day after week oh my god. I’d rather be locked in solitary isolation than listen to these conversations.

Why can they limit it to say 45 minutes and then talk about something more interesting like is Magnolia paint from B&Q better than Magnolia paint from Homebase?

Calories, syns, how fat are my thighs, how fat is my arse, take these biscuits away, here am I nibbling on a cucumber slice, did you see her eat, how is that fair that she gets to eat like that? Honestly. These is no other topic of conversation that would be allowed to dominate an office as much as this one.

And then they wonder why women have body issues.